


Dream Boy

by starmie



Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: (Allegedly) Unrequited Crush, Crushes, Dreams, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Meeting the Family, Star has a big dumb crush, T for swearing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-26
Updated: 2017-06-15
Packaged: 2018-08-11 05:45:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7878775
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starmie/pseuds/starmie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Star begins to have vivid, almost prophetic dreams about being in love with Marco. She doesn't know how to deal with these new emotions, and needs to make decisions. Will she confess and change their relationship forever, or will she hold it in to keep their relationship the same?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Crimson and burgundy flooded her vision. A familiar warmth washed over her. Star felt comfortable and after a few seconds fell into a deep sleep.

Star found herself waltzing around in a semi-crowded ballroom. Red balloons lined the walls. Was it someone's birthday? Couldn't be. She danced very easily, like she had done this before. Star looked up to see who she was dancing with.

Marco.

His warm brown eyes met hers and he gave her the most gentle smile she'd ever seen. The song was about to end, and he stopped her exactly when it did.

The entire ballroom clapped politely. Marco looked at her again, lifted her chin and gave her a sweet kiss. She kissed him back, a little more forcefully, and they smiled into the kiss.

"Queen Star Butterfly, and her future king, Marco Diaz."

Star could barely curtsy under all the petticoats, but managed, and glanced at her apparent husband. He glanced back and without words they embraced.

Moon whisked them off onto some balcony of the castle and they sat there, away from all the Mewmans who definitely wanted to talk to them.

They looked up at the sky. The moon was blue. "Well, it's no blood moon, but it'll do." Marco joked.

Star was shivering, but luckily Marco was wearing his hoodie around his waist to not lose it while Moon was taking them somewhere secluded. He gave her the hoodie and she put her head on his shoulder.

"I love you, Marco." She said softly.

Marco put his arm around the new queen. "I love you too, Star."

* * *

 

She jolted awake in her own bed. It was 6:00 PM, according to her clock, but after a nap, time got all wonky. Turning her head, she saw Marco cuddled next to her, arm around her waist. Dirty laundry littered the ground.

"Uhh, Marco?"

He silently opened his eyes. He looked at Star, smiled sleepily, then noticed his arm around her, and practically flew out of bed with embarrassment.

"Oh my god, Star! I'm so sorry. I know we were both dying after gym today, but my mom told me to do the laundry. I was about to do yours but I guess I passed out on your bed." Marco wasn't lying. Gym class was insane today, she could barely keep her eyes open on the bus ride home.

She stretched out. "It's cool. Are you feeling better? I had a weeeeeird dream."

Marco nodded, gathering the laundry.

"Margo! Star! Be more silent! Mysterious Sonogram is in a rehearsal!" Glossaryck shouted.

They looked up and saw Oskar, Jean, and Glossaryck painting nails and watching one of Mrs. Diaz's telenovelas. Marco and Star giggled.

"I'll go. See you at dinner, I think Dad is making enchiladas."

She gave him a thumbs up. Marco fist bumped the thumbs up and left.

"¡Mi amorcito!" The TV shouted from upstairs.

Star pulled out a book from under her bed. It was large and purple, labeled "Mewnian History."

She flipped to the page with the royal family tree. She travelled down it with her finger. Her aunt Felicity had cold eyes, captured in the painting perfectly. Star knew she resented her, as she was next in line for the Crown. Her finger trailed to the right, her mother.

Moon Butterfly was everything Star wasn't. Thoughtful. Introverted. Calculating. But somehow her husband, River, was pretty much Star's twin. They were pretty much opposites, but they loved each other deeply.

Star put her finger on herself. They couldn't help but think about the dream she'd had. She never imagined liking him any other way than her best friend. But them being romantically involved was suddenly clouding her mind, she could barely think of anything else.

And the kiss. It was the most magical thing in her whole life, and she had a long list of magical things she had done. It kept replaying in her head over and over. Star wanted to kiss him for real. She needed to kiss him for real.

"Star! Dinner!" Mr. Diaz called.

She slid down the railing of the stairs. Marco was setting the table and her heart fell into her stomach.

Star sat down at the table. Enchiladas were delicious, especially Mr. Diaz's. He knew how to season just right.

Marco sat down next to her, smiling. "Wanna tell us about that crazy dream you had?" Mrs. Diaz put their glasses on water on the table, slightly interested in what she had to say.

"Oh, uh, I kinda forgot it." She lied.

He made a raspberry with his mouth. Rafael put the enchiladas for the kids on the table and left with the rest of them.

"Wait, Rafael, I want some!" Angie shouted, chasing him upstairs.

They giggled. Marco's parents were really cute. Whenever they talked about each other, you could hear how much they loved their spouse.

Walking over to their wedding picture with her enchilada, she asked what all the poem in Spanish was. Marco walked over and cleared his throat.

"You're the sun in a world full of stars. You are so bright and everything revolves around you. I am the earth. I am nothing special, but I still love you unconditionally. Thank you for keeping me warm." He read.

Star thought it was really cute. "Who wrote that?"

Marco sat back down, and she trailed after him. "My mom. She learned Spanish just for my dad." He took a bite of enchilada.

"I would learn Spanish just for you."

She hoped that wasn't too flirty. She took a long drink of water and prayed to everyone Rafael always said in the long speeches he did before mealtimes.

He looked a little flustered. "It's a pretty easy language, to be honest. I could probably teach you. I would rather know Mewnian."

Star took their empty dishes and put them in the sink. "I would have to disagree. It's crazy. It's so hard to learn that only the royal family can." She said.

Of course, if her dream was going to come true, he would become a member of a royal family. The thought made her happy. Ruling Mewni wouldn't be half as bad if Marco was with her.

"You know I love a challenge." He winked.

"Do you now?"

Star spun around, skirt fanning out. She was wearing a black turtleneck with a giraffe-print dungaree skirt. Her voice was teasing, but Marco did love a challenge. It's why he took honors classes.

"Is a challenge a secret code name for Jackie Lynn? You really love her." She teased some more, twisting her hair around her finger.

Marco was scrubbing the dishes with a brush. "I don't know about Jackie anymore. I'm starting to think she's not worth it." He said seriously.

On the outside, she looked unfazed. But on the inside, Star was screaming with happiness.

"Is there someone else?"

He shook his head.

"Oh, that's cool. I should probably go kick Oskar out, huh? And get your mom's cheesy telenovela." Star said.

Marco put the clean dishes away. "They're my dad's." He deadpanned.

She climbed upstairs, where Oskar and his ferret had already left. Glossaryck was using a blow dryer to get all 24 of his nails.

"Hey, Glossaryck. Have you ever been in love?"

He swam around in the air for a little bit, which was what he usually did while he thought.

Glossaryck made a lightbulb noise with his mouth. "Nope! I live in a book!" He said.

Star popped the third season of "la fortuna de Juliana" out of the DVD player. That wasn't even the good season. Mr. and Mrs. Diaz swore it only got good when the secret cousin Luisa got introduced in the fifth season.

She began to walk down the stairs, when she noticed Rafael and Angie were cuddling on the couch whispering. She cast a spell that made her able to hear them. A giant ear came out of her wand.

"I really think something is wrong with Star. She's been acting weird around Marco!" Angie said.

"You're imagining things. Star is always weird." Rafael responded, cuddling closer to his wife.

"I think she might have a crush on him!"

Mr. Diaz brushed the hair out of her eyes. "Well, when you combine the most gorgeous woman in the whole world and me, how couldn't she?"

They both laughed. Star walked back upstairs, deciding not to interrupt their conversation. Was it obvious?

She popped the DVD back into Glossaryck's TV, and watched until it was time to go to bed. Star slammed herself onto the bed, simultaneously hoping for another Marco dream and hoping for anything but.

Of course, she had another Marco dream.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> get ready for some Generic Fanfic Tropes™

They were sitting on the balcony, watching the wind flow through the bluish trees. It was cold.

Star pointed at the night sky. "You see, there's the first moon," she rolled over onto her stomach and pointed to the blue orb, "and there's the second one."

Marco was enamored with Mewni's two moons. He thought the single one they had on Earth was cool, but two? That was insane. 

She rolled over him. "It only gets fully dark like, once a month." 

He stopped watching the sky to stare at Star. The princess was so excited to have him see Mewni. It was such a wonderful place, at least to her. 

"Is that why your night vision is so bad?" He teased, looking back up at the sky.

Star laughed. "I can see everything I need to, Diaz!" She shouted.

"What don't you need to see?"

"Your opinion!" 

Star spun her wand around, a magical pair of sunglasses descending from the sky and landing perfectly on her face.

Marco and Star stared at each other smugly, cheeks puffed, trying hard not to laugh. Marco looked away, smirking like he was about to diss her back.

"Star, I don't know if I like your sunglasses." He said. 

She frowned slightly. "What's wrong with them?"

Marco snorted at the joke he hadn't told yet. "They don't really help your.... night vision." He watched her face go from upset to surprise.

Star cried out indignantly. She stood up, flailing her arms around, shouting incoherent words. Face scrunched, the princess sat back down and shoved Marco's shoulders.

She punched him in the chest. "Stupid. Mean. Dumb. Boy." Her words were punctuated with a punch.

Marco grabbed her by the arms, flipping her over and pinning her down. 

"Sorry, did that hurt?"

Star shook her head, blushing slightly. "You know Marco, I heard you're only supposed to use karate from self-defense." She said.

He laughed nervously. "Who'd you hear that from?" Marco asked.

"Some misunderstood bad boy."

Marco took a strand out of her intricate updo. He watched it fall and perfectly frame her chin. "So rebellious." They said together, laughing.

Queen Butterfly opened the balcony door.

"Star!" She shrieked, suddenly right in front of them. "What are you doing? This is obscene!" 

Marco realized he still had Star pinned down from the karate move. They had to admit, it would look kind of obscene.

"Mom, it's not like that. We were just hanging out." Star said, flustered.

The boy had rolled away several feet, sitting criss cross applesauce, hands in his lap. 

Moon eyed them suspiciously. "Regardless, your hair and outfit is ruined. Marco, I will send an escort to take you to your room. You were both due for an outfit change anyway. Star. You're a queen now. You can't be doing things of this sort anymore." 

"Yes, mother." Star bowed her head solemnly.

\--

Star woke up to the lazer puppies licking her face. She yawned and stretched out. It was Saturday, luckily, and that meant no school.

It also meant the best breakfast of the week. She could smell it so well she could taste it. Star cast a spell and spun around, the blue dress suddenly appearing on her body. Flinging herself downstairs, she landed on the couch with a thud. 

Latin pop music was coming from the kitchen, peppy words she didn't understand but enjoyed listening to. It was a Diaz family tradition to all make breakfast together on Saturdays.

Rafael and Marco were cooking up something, a recipe hanging from a clothespin. "Good morning, Star!" Marco shouted over the music. "Breakfast won't be ready for another thirty minutes or so." 

"Okay! Where's Mrs. Diaz?" Star asked.

Mr. Diaz broke his concentration. "She's in bed. Not feeling well. Something about a kid sneezing." He said.

She nodded, giving them a thumbs up, and climbing back upstairs to the master bedroom. "Super Sterile Shield!" 

King Butterfly had told her that it could be really bad if she got any Earth diseases, since her Mewman body wouldn't know how to cure them. She hadn't gotten sick yet, but better safe than sorry.

"Oh, Star, good morning!" Angie said, sneezing twice. 

The princess waved hello. "Can I talk to you about something?"

Star had decidedly needed a mother figure to talk about her new feelings. The only other mom she knew was her own, and after that dream, she didn't want to talk to her. Mrs. Diaz patted the side of her bed, offering for her to sit.

"What's wrong? Boy troubles?" Mrs. Diaz asked.

"How could you tell?"

She winked. "A mother's intuition."

Star groaned, burrowing herself under the covers. She got comfortable. This was going to be a long one. 

"I've got it bad for your son. Like, crazy bad." Star said slowly, processing the words. They were hard to admit.

Mrs. Diaz smirked to herself. "I love Marco with all my heart, of course, but why him? You're a magical space princess, and he's just a normal, kind of dorky, boy." 

She took a deep breath in. Star could probably list for hours all the reasons she liked Marco. And she did.

"...and he gives really good hugs." She finished.

Angie sneezed in surprise. Star wasn't lying when she said she had it crazy bad for Marco. It reminded her of how infatuated she was with Rafael back in Mexico. Her best friend Gloria had gotten so annoyed. He was all she talked about.

"Why don't you tell him all that?"

Star spasmed so hard she fell off the bed. "No way. He doesn't like me like that." She said, beginning to get flustered.

Mrs. Diaz smiled. "You'll never know if you don't ask, Star." She replied.

From downstairs, she could hear the quiet voice of the best Earth singer. Shakira. Star rushed down, thanking Marco's mom for the advice.

Hips Don't Lie was the only Earth song she had fully memorized, besides Fergalicious. Marco told her she couldn't be a real Earth girl without knowing all the lyrics. He was joking of course, but she could never get the tune out of her head afterwards.

Marco was in their cramped kitchen, wearing oven mitts, singing into a wooden spoon. Star contemplated filming him, but decided against it. 

She did a backflip, landing on the kitchen counter in a jokingly seductive pose. "Can't you see baby this is perfection?" Star, Marco, and Shakira all sang in unison.

Marco Diaz was eerily good at body rolls. His dancing was amazing when he wanted it to be. And apparently, a slightly staticky Shakira at 9 AM meant pulling out all the stops.

"Wow, Marco, your hips really don't lie." She said through muffled giggles.

He posed dramatically as the song ended. "They've told a couple of mistruths."

Star jumped off the counter. "I think my hips would go to jail for tax evasion."

"I think your hips would go to court for tax evasion, but the jury would declare you innocent." Marco said.

They laughed loudly. Mr. Diaz shushed them, he was on the phone. Speaking in rapid-fire Spanish, he sounded a little fearful. That could only mean one thing. He was talking to his mom.

"Marco, why don't you come talk to your Abuela." He suggested.

Star watched the light leave his eyes as Rafael handed him the corded wall phone. "Hi, Grandma." Marco paused. "That's not my name. It's alright. I understand. That sounds...fun."

He turned to face Star with a look of anguish. "Oh, here? We um... have another exchange student. We don't have enough space for everyone. What? You want to talk to her? Alright..." Marco smirked and handed her the phone.

"Uh, hi, Ms. Diaz." She said awkwardly.

There was a sigh of relief from the other line. "Oh, you sound sweet. What's your name? Where are you from?"

Star mouthed the questions to Marco, who shrugged frantically. "I'm Star..." He nodded. "And I'm from M..."

Marco had pulled up country names that started with M and held them out to her. 

"Macedonia!" She shouted suddenly.

Abuela Diaz hummed. "I see. Anyways, Marco seems not to want for the whole family to come up to Echo Creek, so how would you feel about taking a road trip down to México?" 

Star's eyes widened and without a second thought, agreed. "That sounds wonderful." She said.

Four or five voices shouted from Abuela's house. She must've been on speakerphone. "One last question. Alejandro, Francisca, Francisco, y Stefan, leave, por favor." Ms. Diaz said to the children who must've been shouting. The phone clicked which must've meant she had taken her off of speakerphone.

"Are you and Marco...dating?" Her voice was low.

Star got extremely flustered. Her words began to slur. "Ah, uh, what? I mean... who? Wait, no. Yes! Wait, wait, that was wrong. I mean..." 

They couldn't see each other, but Star could tell Ms. Diaz was smirking. "Okay. See you next week." She hung up abruptly.

Marco had put breakfast on the table while Star and Abuela were talking. "Mom, breakfast is ready!" 

Mrs. Diaz coughed loudly from upstairs. Rafael groaned, taking two plates and taking them upstairs. 

"Family reunion, huh?" Star said.

"Don't worry about it, it'll be fun." Marco answered, slamming a massive book down on the dining table. "You just need to memorize all of this."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you know what's not fun?
> 
> school
> 
> you know what is fun?
> 
> writing crush fics bc i just want star and marco to be happy
> 
> sorry this took so long

Star felt like she had studied for the hardest test in her life, but it was just Marco's extended family. She barely knew her own, how could he expect her to remember who was who?

"Do you have any secret cousins like Luisa?" She asked.

He laughed. "Not that I know of, but I wouldn't be surprised. Stephanie's probably pregnant again." 

Rafael shrieked, stomping downstairs. "With who's baby? Your husband lives in a box for three days and you go get pregnant with his brother's daughter!" He shouted, putting Angie and his dishes into the sink and turning the water pressure all the way up.

Star and Marco glanced at each other. 

"You have Softy and everyone is like, oh wow, she has her father's eyes! Apparently not! Star, you know what I got her for Christmas?" She shook her head. "A paternity test!"

The princess couldn't help but gape at him. This was way more interesting than La Fortuna de Juliana. And she didn't need a VHS to watch things unfold.

He stomped back upstairs, fuming at his sister-in-law. Star was suddenly much more excited for the family reunion. She just might need some popcorn. 

"Call Janna." She told her pocket mirror, and she picked up almost instantly.

The line was a little crinkly and it was hard to hear, but not too hard. She put it on speakerphone so Marco could hear. "Hey Star. Marco." 

They looked at each other. "Where are you? You're kinda quiet." He shouted.

"Uhh, like Nebraska? I don't know dude, I'm not a map." Janna said, raising her voice. 

"Why are you in Nebraska?!" 

She clicked her tongue. "Chill, Marco. I'm going to a family reunion. I'm gonna be like, the youngest person there."

Star turned off speakerphone so that she could hear better. "That's funny! I was going to ask if you wanted to go to Marco's family reunion with us this weekend." She twisted her hair around her finger.

"I mean, not really. I'll be busy. Also, I don't really want to third-wheel you guys. It's awkward." Janna giggled mischievously. 

She hadn't even told her about the crush! Was it that obvious? She handed the mirror to Marco, a little defeated. 

He stood up. Marco had to pace around while talking on the phone. It was a habit Star known about, but it was especially cute now. "What? It's nothing like that. No, she doesn't. I'm sure. What's that supposed to mean? I know lots!" He had made a tidy lap around the living room.

"Yeah. God! Aren't your parents right there? They're listening! Well, hi, Mr. and Mrs. Ordonia! I'm hanging up. See ya later."

Marco tossed Star the pocket mirror. He slammed down into the couch, covering himself in the excessive amount of decorative pillows Mrs. Diaz buys. 

"Bury me alive." He said, as defeated as Star.

After being properly coated, she sniffled and pretended to cry. "Marco Ubaldo Diaz. He was cute. He was good at karate. He made really good nachos. And now..." Star wiped away a fake tear, "he's dead as shit." 

He sat up, pillows falling off of him. "You think I'm cute?" He asked.

Star shouted. "Ahh! Zombie!" She pulled out her wand, blasting him with the trusty Marshmallow Moon Beam. 

Marco suddenly spit out a ton of white mush, which used to be marshmallows. The living room was not a good place for a wand fight. 

He placed the side of his hand to Star's jaw, pouting slightly. This was a red belt move, she could tell. He'd never done it before. "I could break your jaw into a million pieces." Marco threatened jokingly.

Star licked her lips. "Do it, scrub." 

The boy got into a squat, turned his hand, and aimed right for her jawbone. He stopped right before it made impact, but she still fell to the floor, pretending like it hurt.

She landed on the pile of pillows Marco had kicked off, giggling for a second but then feigning demise.

"Star Johannessen-Butterfly. She was cute. She was really good at magic. Her hair was always soft, even though she was afraid of the shower. And now..." he sprinkled some more pillows on her, "she's dead as shit."

Rafael shouted from upstairs. "What will you do without your best friend?" He said sadly.

"Pouring one out for my homies." Marco sobbed, taking the half-full water bottle on the coffee table and waterfalling it into his mouth. He started choking and swallowed after panicking for a couple minutes.

Star sat up and laughed at Marco, who was all red and flustered. He laughed with her, until they broke out into a fit of hysteria.

They laughed so hard they started to choke, and laughed harder because they were choking. Mrs. Diaz was shouting medical knowledge from her month of nursing school.

"Calm down! It wasn't that funny!" Mr. Diaz yelled. 

After taking deep breaths like Angie had recommended, they relaxed and crumpled onto the couch, which had no pillows. They smiled at each other. "Are you okay?" 

Marco was so nice. He was choking just as bad, maybe even worse, but his first instinct was to ask if she was okay. Star decided she had made a good decision on the person to pine over.

"Are you okay?" She repeated.

He nodded, turning on the TV. It was a new telenovela, that Rafael had been raving about for weeks after seeing the pilot. "Do you want me to record Eres Azul, Dad?" Marco shouted to upstairs. He didn't respond, just kind of grunted. 

It didn't have subtitles, and Star was thoroughly confused. They talked so fast and with so much conviction. Spanish was such a pretty language.

"Wait, Marco. Can you understand all this?" She asked, looking at him with her peripheral vision. 

Marco hummed. "Most of it. I understand what they're saying but I don't understand some of the words on their own. You see, Claudia here is telling her family she's leaving for Mumbai. And Carlos is like, not today, it's the anniversary of your mother's death. But I couldn't tell you what a maleta is." 

Angie coughed and leaned over the staircase railing. "Suitcase." She told him confidently.

She walked downstairs, groaned at the mess, and picked up all the pillows. "I forgot you were fluent in Spanish, Mrs. Diaz." Star said.

"More like conversational now. I miss Mexico, though, I can't wait to go back. It's a beautiful country," Mrs. Diaz sighed dreamily, pinching Marco's cheeks. "And the men are all so handsome."

Marco groaned. "Mom, I thought you were sick." He grumbled.

Angie released her grip on her son's face, inhaled sharply, and stared at her hands in shock. She shrieked and ran upstairs.

"Uh, I'm gonna go take a shower. Can you check if I recorded the documentary on Mackie Hand?" He said to Star. She nodded and he followed his mom upstairs.

Once she knew he couldn't see her, Star twirled around, holding her wand with both hands and smiling. She was so in love, it was almost sad.

It was sad, Star decided, as she turned on the TV. She flipped through the recordings and noticed the documentary had been recorded on the Spanish channel. This might be a problem. 

She waited for the tap to turn on, then the unmistakable noise of the shower curtain being adjusted. Star walked upstairs and knocked on the bathroom door. "Come in!"

The princess didn't look at Marco through the mostly-opaque shower curtain, and instead directed her attention to the clouding mirror. 

"Hey, so, you recorded the documentary, but in Spanish." Star said, absentmindedly drawing hearts in the fog. 

Marco hummed. "That's fine."

"How much Spanish do you know?" Catching herself, she rubbed out the hearts with her hand and drew stars instead.

"More than my mom but less than my dad." He said, squeezing a hair product into his hand with a funny noise.

She nodded. "How am I going to understand it?" 

"I didn't think you'd be interested." Marco admitted. That was a fair point, she wasn't really. 

Star drummed her fingers on the counter, sharing at her reflection. "Well, maybe I just wanted to impress you." She said honestly, but with an inflection to make him think she was joking.

Marco turned the tap off slowly. "You're funny. Can you go record it in English while I dry off?" 

She saluted and left the bathroom. Well, at least she had an excuse to spend more time with him. Star slid down the staircase rail and flopped onto the couch. 

She recorded the documentary and lay down, staring at the ceiling. What was she doing? He was cute and all, really cute. And nice. And charismatic. And funny. And smart. But having such a big crush on him wasn't good for her, right? Should she try and stop this crush on him?

As he walked down the stairs with slightly damp hair and a soft smile, Star decided she couldn't.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me? consistent chapter release schedule? what a good joke. ill try to be more active over the summer but...depression
> 
> next chapter we meet marco's terrible family. get psyched.

After finishing the documentary, Star and Marco ran back up to her room. They sat across from each other on her canopy bed, with a bowl of yogurt-covered raisins between them. 

"Where does your family even live, anyways?" Star asked. 

He threw a raisin into the air, trying to catch it in his mouth and missing. "Tonalá, Jalisco. It's really nice there, actually. People call it the pottery capital of Mexico. At least my grandma does." 

Star pulled out an Earth encyclopedia from under her bed, a gift from her mother. She flipped to the page with a big picture of Mexico, divided into all the states. Marco pointed to Jalisco, which was right on the coast. 

"Whoa. How long does it take to drive there?" She wondered, staring at the map with a slightly agape mouth.

Marco hummed. "Like, a full day. Twenty-seven hours? Something like that." 

Star gasped, slamming the book shut and tossing the bowl of raisins. He flinched from the loud noise and began to pick up the yogurt-covered raisins. "Marco! I get bored after like, ten minutes of nothing. An entire day on I-5 is my personal hell." 

"You'll be fine. We can totally find fun stuff to do, I promise." He said.

She sighed, putting the encyclopedia back under her bed. Marco held her hand sympathetically. She got somewhat flustered. "Do you want me to tell you all the family drama?"

Star squeezed his hand tightly. "I thought you'd never ask." She smiled, her cheeks rosy.

He pulled out the crumpled family tree he had made earlier, placing it on the bed. He scooted over to her side. Star handed him a glittery pencil, not letting go of his hand. 

Marco pointed at a circle with the eraser. "Stephanie, Enrique's wife. She's a bitch. She causes like, all the problems in our family. First of all, she had a kid with Julio, which is like, not her husband, like my dad said." He pointed to another circle, labeled Softy. 

"Is her name actually Softy?" 

He shook his head. "It's Sofia, but no one calls her that. It's always been Softy." Marco said.

He glanced at their hands, but didn't say anything. "Anyways, she's a bitch. She tells my mom that my dad only married her to get his Green Card all the time. It's not true, but my dad always gets really emotional afterwards." 

Star frowned. "Any fun drama?" She asked.

He laughed slightly. "All my primas, the little ones at least, have a secret club. I don't know what they do, but they have a whole handshake and everything. I think they're planning world domination."

Star suddenly got very excited. "Marco, how do I join this club?" 

It was either the world domination or the secret handshake that caught her attention, but she couldn't decide which was more exciting. 

"It's very exclusive. Actually, maybe not. Nora's technically our second cousin because she's Anita's daughter and Anita is Dad's cousin...that's irrelevant." Marco got slightly sidetracked.

He scribbled something on the backside of the family tree. He wrote out the rules of the club he could remember.

1\. Girls only!  
2\. Must be a Diaz or be best friends with one!  
3\. Have to have kissed the frog prince!  
4\. Keep the club secret from everyone, even the rest of the family!  
5\. Know that Francisca is the leader and no one is allowed to replace her!

Star decided it was simultaneously amazing and terrifying. Little girls never failed to impress her. "The best friend part doesn't sound true." She smirked.

"It is! Francisca wanted her best friend Natalia to join, but she wasn't a Diaz, so she just changed the rule." Marco said authoritatively. 

She looked through the rules again. "Who's the frog prince?"

Marco thought about it for a minute, wracking his brain until he remembered. "Francisca's brother Junior has a pet frog named Ranito, I think that's it." He concluded.

Star drew an arrow to the fourth rule. "How do you know all this? I didn't think you'd tell me." She said.

"My mom got invited, but decided she was too old. It was cute, though. Francisca is kind of a brat, but her sister María isn't, and she invited her. There's not a rule you have to be born a Diaz, I guess." Marco leaned back onto the bed.

She smiled. "What, your mom told you then? What a rebel." Star laughed, imagining the poetry-writing mother wearing a leather jacket and riding a motorcycle. It was an image she usually kept for her own mother, but Angie was just as funny.

"Oh yeah. She can't keep a secret to save her life." He said, shuddering slightly.

Star suddenly remembered the thirty-minute profession of love that she had given her. She sunk into her bed, waiting for the entire state of California, or more topically the state of Jalisco, to know about the crush.

Abuelita already knew, too! Star began to weigh the pros and cons of this family reunion and decided on shitty. 

But Marco was a pretty pessimistic guy, and she could have lots of fun. She couldn't totally rule out the possibility of having a good time.

Star was suddenly hyper aware of the fact she was holding Marco's hand. She held it occasionally, usually when dragging him around, but now it was a little weird. Not normal weird, but the kind of romantic-tension weird. 

"Okay, Marco, you can go! I'm gonna sleep." She said, watching his face shift from deep in thought to normal.

He nodded, jumping off the bed and letting go of Star's hand slowly. "Later, Star." 

She watched him leave, closing the door behind him. She subconsciously clenched the hand he held and put it next to her heart. Star lay in bed a little longer, fidgeting slightly with a big smile.

She liked him so much. Her heart pattered and her stomach did backflips. Star hadn't even felt this way with Tom, or Oskar for that matter. She had it bad.

Star took her wand to cast a spell and turned off the lights. She tucked it under her pillow and shimmied under the blankets. "Goodnight, Earth."

As she faded from consciousness, the princess realized she'd have another weird Marco dream. Her brain was full of mixed-Mexican boy mush. Star became overwhelmed with sleep, and a dream began in her mind.

••

Star and Marco were outside, running away from the castle as fast as they could, and into the capital city. A gruff voice was yelling at them from the balcony, telling them to desist. Star couldn't even imagine the scolding she'd get from her mom. Her stomach was twisting and turning as they ran out of the front yard. 

"Come on, we can't give up now!" Marco cheered after seeing her slow down. Several retainers were chasing them, and getting caught would lead to some crazy punishment. 

The princess grabbed onto his hand. Her heart was racing, she had just needed a break from all the hustle and bustle of the ceremony alone with Marco. She hadn't meant to start such a ruckus.

As they ran, the stores in town became less and less well-maintained. Star often forgot how terrible most of the citizens of Mewni had it. They sprinted into an unlit alleyway and hid from the retainers.

"Are you okay?"

Marco was always so concerned for her well being. It made her so happy. He made her so happy.

"Perfect." She breathed.

He held Star's hands, smiling softly. She pressed her face into his chest while giggling. "Sorry for causing such a scene." Her giggles turned into crying. 

Marco began to stroke her hair. "You're fine. It's nice to get away from the castle. And I never mind being alone with you." He said.

Star sniffled and looked at him. Her face went pink, wiping her tears with the side of her hand. "Can I kiss you?"

Marco nodded. She pressed her lips to his, straddling him slightly as he grabbed her hair subconsciously. 

They kissed for several minutes until they heard a familiar march of retainers. "How are you such a good kisser? I'm all sweaty and weird." He whispered.

They were hiding behind a dumpster, praying to every god they could think of. "I have many hidden talents." Star said quietly, smirking slightly. 

"Like what?" Marco asked.

Star giggled. "Oh, wouldn't you like to know?" 

"Yes, that's why I asked." Marco deadpanned. 

She twisted the string of his hoodie around her finger, humming slightly in thought. "Well...for starters..."

Suddenly, the dumpster they were behind slammed into the wall with a very loud noise. Trash spilled out from each side. Retainers were shouting in Mewnian, grabbing them both by the arms and pulling them apart. 

"I can't believe this fucking child is the queen of Mewni." A retainer spat.

••

Star jolted awake, teary-eyed for some reason. It was 4 in the morning, the first inklings of sunlight peaking through her blinds. She tossed in her bed and grabbed her pocket mirror. Ponyhead was the first person she thought to call. She had been talking about the all-nighter she was going to do for a while.

It rang, and the pony's sleepy face appeared onscreen. She had dark circles and said hello in a tired voice. "What's up, B-Fly? You never call me this early." 

"I need your opinion on something." Star said seriously. 

Ponyhead clicked her tongue, getting comfy in her bed. "Go for it."

Star explained the vivid dreams she'd been having about Marco. She talked about how weirdly romantic they were, but it wasn't like she minded. 

She took a deep breath. "It almost seems like...I'm seeing the future."

"Girl, I once had a dream I was a roll of sushi, and Tom's dad was gonna eat me. I think you were a mailman. Anyways, does that mean I'm actually a piece of sushi and you're actually a mailman?" She asked, then answered her own question. "No! It's just a dream!" 

Star sighed. "I guess you're right. It really felt like I was in the castle though. It felt like I was actually, um, kissing Marco." She shifted uncomfortably in her bed, blushing slightly.

Ponyhead began to laugh manically. "God, you're lame! I still love you though." She made kissing sounds with her mouth. "Anyways, I'm going to bed."

"I thought you were pulling an all-nighter?" Star was confused.

The horse head nodded. "Yeah, girl, but I need my beauty sleep. You do too, go back to bed." She said, not understanding the concept of an all-nighter. 

Star began to say something, but stopped herself. "Okay, g'night P." 

Ponyhead hung up without saying goodbye. That was one of her bad habits. The blonde girl lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling hoping to go back to sleep.

She stared at the ceiling for a long time. She could absolutely not fall back asleep. Sunlight was streaming into her room. Decisively, Star got out of bed, got dressed, and started her day with a smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> end note: bc im introducing the diazes soon i'd really appreciate if any Latino/Latina readers could tell me what tropes/stereotypes to avoid when writing a Latino family
> 
> i admittedly did already dip into the whole "mexican families are always huge" stereotype but that was mostly for plot convenience than anything else. i want to tell the best story possible without being racist, and being white, need a little help with that. thank you in advance!


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